


A Companion's Companion 2 - The Further Adventures of Ianto Jones

by ximeria



Series: A Companion's Companion [2]
Category: Doctor Who, Torchwood
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-08-14
Updated: 2008-08-14
Packaged: 2017-10-02 08:12:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ximeria/pseuds/ximeria
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ianto should have known that things were too good to be true.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Companion's Companion 2 - The Further Adventures of Ianto Jones

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks once again goes to Nora Charles for several thorough beta sessions and to Nicci, for cheering and never losing faith in me or this story.
> 
> This story nearly killed me - and parts of it had to be deleted and completely rewritten... like the last two thirds of it *g*. This AU probably won't make all that much sense unless you read the first Companion's Companion story.
> 
> Note on warnings: I realized even Jack being immortal rates that warning. As for graphic depiction of violence, it's not half as bad as it sounds and nothing you wouldn't see on the show.

  
_ Maybe I have been here before,  
I know this room; I have walked this floor,  
I used to live alone before I knew you_

I've seen your flag on the marble arch,  
love is not a victory march,  
it's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah




~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto had gone through four mental stages within the past ten minutes. The first one had been confusion, the second panic, the third had been the cold feeling of crystal clarity and finally? Resignation.

Why? Because the bloody ship was gone. The ship that had been his home for the past four months. Ianto ran a hand through his hair, not even caring that by now it would have to be standing on end.

The planet he was stranded on looked a little like Earth, but it had two moons, and that was in broad daylight. Ianto couldn't remember if it had more during the night. He'd been... a little preoccupied the night before, which meant checking the number of moons had been very low on his list.

Unfortunately it looked like he'd be there to see for himself tonight, because he was obviously not going anywhere... unless he developed wings and an ability to breathe in the cold, dark void of space.

Ianto shook his head. He shouldn't sink into self pity, he couldn't afford to. Although this was a fairly friendly place from what he'd seen so far, there still was the little incident he and Jack had gotten into a few hours earlier.

If those people came looking for them and found him... well, he probably shouldn't hang about. Then again, if he left, what if Jack came back? No, what about _when_ Jack came back for him? He couldn't allow himself to even consider that Jack would just up and leave him on a strange planet somewhere centuries and light years from the world where he'd been born.

The area he was in consisted mostly of forest and he stayed the shade and cover of the trees. He should wait a little longer. Maybe something had happened and Jack had had to move the ship.

Taking the chance of breaking radio silence, Ianto pulled out the modified mobile he always kept with him. He had to admit that knowing a Time Lord with a knack for tinkering with technology and a sonic screwdriver had its advantages.

There were very few numbers in the phone's memory and Ianto rarely used it. There were his family's numbers, of which he'd only used his mother's once so far, to check up on her. There was Rose's number, because she'd insisted and there was a number for Jack and the ship.

Ianto took a deep breath and let it out again, slowly, pushing the call button. Waiting for the connection, he shivered a little. He didn't know how far the temperature would go down and he wished he had the information the ship's computer could provide him with. Then again, if he had access, he wouldn't really need said information.

The change of tone told him that it was connecting and Ianto waited patiently for an answer. Then it was cut off, abruptly. Ianto pulled the phone from his ear and stared at the display. Call disconnected? What the hell was going on?

Shaking his head, he tried again. And again. With the same result. The signal went through, but was disconnected instead of being picked up. Something had to be wrong or Jack would answer. What if someone had kidnapped Jack? What if Jack had fled something or someone and had had to leave Ianto behind?

Ianto stood still for a moment, listening for anything that might be out of the ordinary. To only realize that he wouldn't know what _was_ out of the ordinary. He was stranded on an unknown planet where he was the alien.

Night was falling fast and the temperature was dropping even faster. Ianto knew he'd have to find somewhere to spend the night, even if he was reluctant to leave the spot where he'd last seen the ship.

His short time with Jack had taught him to take risks, but he hadn't been on his own then. He'd had Jack right there next to him taking every insane chance with him... Ianto stared down at the mobile still in his hand and made a decision, scrolling through the contacts, stopping at 'R'.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto leaned his head against the cool wall, waiting for the tea to finish steeping. There were times he thought the TARDIS felt almost alive, definitely organic. She, the Doctor had referred to the ship and the core as a 'she'. Ianto pulled the tea bags out of the cups and put them on a tray that he could have sworn hadn't been there a moment earlier. Unsure how the others liked their tea, he put a small bowl of sugar on the tray as well.

Normally he'd make himself a cup of coffee, but the last thing he needed was the caffeine keeping him awake - as per usual driving his mind into thinking too much about things he'd rather push away. A small voice in the back of his head kept wondering if his newfound aversion to coffee might be linked to the last time he'd a cup. Jack had loved his coffee kick and made the drinking of it almost obscenely sensual.

Ianto killed that thought as soon as it popped into his head and focused on the tea making. Too bad there was no... Ianto stared at the kitchen counter. There was a small creamer standing there. Ianto shook his head and put it on the tray as well.

Who was he to question what could or couldn't happen aboard the TARDIS? The ship seemed about as eccentric as the Doctor himself. Ianto had only been there for an hour, and the kitchen he'd found seemed almost welcoming. As had the Doctor and Rose, but he'd felt a bit overwhelmed by their attention and had asked if he could make them all some tea. He'd ignored the look that they had exchanged. He didn't want their pity.

"Ah, done hiding, are you?" Rose's voice startled him as he left the kitchen, but he managed to keep the tray level, spilling not a drop of tea.

Ianto gave her a small smile and turned to walk alongside her, hoping she was heading toward the bridge or whatever the Doctor would call his control room. He wasn't sure he could find his way back there since when Rose had shown him the kitchen they had walked through an almost maze like selection of hallways.

He could have sworn that the trip back felt a lot shorter and he'd always prided himself on a perfect memory. Either there were other ways to get through the ship or the hallways were changing from time to time.

"You know," Rose said conversationally. "I was a bit surprised when you called, asking to be picked up."

Ianto allowed himself a small smile. Straight to the point again. She had asked him earlier why, and he'd simply said that Jack had disappeared. He hadn't given her the play by play of what had happened before that, just that they'd gotten themselves into a spot of bother and split up.

"The Doctor is trying to track down Jack, get in touch with him," she continued, watching him curiously.

Ianto nodded. "I do appreciate this," he said quietly as he followed her into the control room of the TARDIS, where the Doctor was staring at a monitor with a pretty puzzled look on his face.

"Well," the Doctor said, running a hand through his already dishevelled hair. "I have just received the oddest message from our Captain Harkness," he said. "He seemed almost frantic about your whereabouts until I explained to him that you were safe and sound here with us, then he completely changed his tone, just said 'good for him' and well... hung up."

Ianto frowned. What on earth was going on with Jack? Here he'd hoped that when the Doctor did manage to get in contact with Jack, Ianto'd get his answers, but it seemed things were taking a turn for the weirder.

"Now, I'm a bit at a loss as to what we are to do with you, young Mr. Jones," The Doctor continued with a thoughtful expression on his face.

Ianto took a deep breath and held out the tray, opening his mouth to answer. They might as well take him back home, because it looked like Ianto's adventures were heading for a dead end.

"Ooh, tea!" the Doctor exclaimed, bouncing over to them, dumping two spoonfuls of sugar into one of the cups, pouring some cream in and taking a sip. An almost ecstatic look crossed his face. "If you don't mind, I would love for you to stay."

Ianto raised an eyebrow and turned his head to look at Rose, who was having a hard time not laughing. "The Doctor likes his tea," she confided in him, shaking her head. "And I'd love for you to stay as well," she continued, taking her own cup of tea, not putting in nearly as much sugar and cream. "Not just for the tea, of course," she added, shooting the Doctor a stern look.

"Oh!" the Doctor shook his head, smiling almost maniacally at him. "Not just for the tea of course, although... could you make more? Later I mean?"

Ianto couldn't bring himself to turn the man down. He looked so much like a little kid who'd just realized that he could have candy every morning for breakfast if he played his cards right.

"Just until we can find Jack and figure this out," Rose said, giving him a sweet smile.

Ianto looked from one to the other and felt his resolve weakening. What would be there for him if he asked them to take him back to Earth? There was nothing there but a family he rarely saw anyway, not to mention the problems with Torchwood and his rather abrupt leave. Compared to the possibility of travelling with the Doctor and Rose? Maybe while he was in the TARDIS they could track down Jack, because as much as Ianto was confused about being left behind like that, he was more than curious enough to want to know why and besides, he wasn't entirely sure he was ready to give up on Jack just yet. Should it turn out that Jack had dumped him on purpose, Ianto wasn't sure what he'd do, but he was going to make sure he had all the facts before making his choice.

The Doctor and Rose were both watching him with expectation and Ianto's annoyance and simmering anger with Jack was pushed into the background as he had to smile at them. Only Jack had ever made him cave this fast before. "Yes, I would love to travel with you, for as long as you'll have me."

Rose threw her arms around him, managing to not spill a drop of her tea, but almost making him drop the tray he was still holding. Ianto looked up, feeling his face heat a little but he met the Doctor's sparkling eyes with determination.

"Well," the Doctor said before draining his cup. "So, where'd you wanna go?" he asked. "Apollonia during its glory days or Auxileraetionialititia for the rainy season? It's got some brilliant rainbows, I can tell you." He stared into his empty cup, then backup at Ianto. "We'll keep trying to find Jack, but there's no reason we shouldn't have a bit of fun and take the scenic route - Jack can take care of himself, I'm sure."

Ianto nodded; unfortunately, yes. So if Jack didn't need him along, there was no reason why Ianto shouldn't enjoy a little adventure, Time Lord style.

Even if he _would_ miss the sex.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

"Come on, Ianto," Rose said with a grin. "I'll be the first one to admit that you look edible in a suit, but where we're going, according to the Doctor, a bit less formal would work better."

Ianto gave her a surprised look. He hadn't thought all that much about it. Since he'd started travelling with Jack, the man had made no secret of preferring Ianto in a suit and Ianto had sort of just... followed along that path. He liked the way Jack would look at him when he wore a suit.

"The TARDIS has this insane room with more clothes than any shops - I swear I keep finding new stuff in there every time I go looking," Rose said excitedly as she pulled at his arm, leading him down a hallway that Ianto knew hadn't been there a moment ago. He'd been travelling in the TARDIS for a week now and he was only slowly getting used to the ship and her quirks.

"Aren't we supposed to be arriving in a few minutes?" Ianto asked, not really wanting to go play dress-up. "We shouldn't keep the Doctor waiting."

"Are you kidding?" Rose said with a laugh. "He's already in the closet, if I know him right. He said even he would look out of place wearing one of his 20th century suits, so that means you have to change as well."

Ianto shook his head but willingly let her drag him along.

Rose hadn't been downplaying the amount of clothes in the room. It wasn't a walk in closet so much as a whole room full of everything from formal suits to psychedelic coloured attire over historical dresses and the like.

"There you are!" the Doctor said happily as he bounced over to them, holding up an obscure mixture of clothes, one more eye-watering in colour than the other. "How do you like these?" he asked, looking for all in the world like a little kid on Christmas morning.

"Those are... eh...," Ianto searched for any words that wouldn't be too rude.

"God, those are loud," Rose said, threading her arm through Ianto's. "Really Doctor, you haven't told us where we're going, how can we dress for the occasion?"

The Doctor pursed his lips, stared at the outfit, then at Rose, before turning his pleading eyes to Ianto.

"Oh no," Ianto said. "Look at the way I tend to dress, compared to Rose." He shook his head. "Unless it's a matter of life and death, I'm not wearing anything like that, and as pleasant as you are to look at normally, I have to admit _those_ are going to hurt my eyes."

The Doctor stopped his pouting and lit up into a huge grin. "You hear that, Rose?" he asked. "I'm pleasant to look at."

Ianto felt heat rise in his face, wondering what the hell had prompted him to say that. Next to him, Rose was laughing so hard she had to lean on him for support.

"Don't let it go to your head, Doctor," Rose said, still giggling, a sound that Ianto found quite soothing. It sounded and felt so light hearted and it was just what he needed to take his mind off Jack for a little while.

"Oh, I won't," said the Doctor, waggling his eyebrows, throwing the clothes over his shoulder so they landed on top of another discarded mountain of mismatched clothes. "Now, let's see about finding something for our time travelling taffy."

The Doctor grabbed Ianto's right arm, Rose the other and Ianto found himself being dragged forward into the insanity of the Doctor's closet before he could call him on his choice of words.

"Try this one," Rose said, dumping a frilly, light blue shirt in his arms. Ianto stared at it, though Rose had already ducked back in between the hangers.

The shirt was removed from Ianto's grip before he could say anything. "Too subtle," the Doctor said, exchanging it with a vibrant dark red one instead. "It'll look good on you," he said, in answer to Ianto's raised eyebrow.

"So why the loud colours?" Ianto asked as he hung the shirt over a chair and began stripping off his suit jacket and shirt.

"Oh, didn't I tell you?" the Doctor asked with surprise, for a moment stopping his own weird strip show.

"No you didn't," came Rose's voice, muffled by the layers of clothes between her and the two men. Ianto shook his head, agreeing with her.

"Oh," the Doctor said, smiling widely again. "We're going to the year 23,200, to Richel, third moon of the planet Titiuan. They have the most magnificent harvest festivals you can imagine."

Ianto stared at the shirt. "And the colours?"

"The more the better," the Doctor said, pulling an almost neon green shirt down over his head. Ianto quite thought it clashed with the yellow trousers he's just put on, but who was he to guess at the clothes habits of the Richel inhabitants?

A pair of trousers hit him in the face, and when Ianto pulled them away, he found Rose grinning down at him. "Those should fit, eh?" Before Ianto could answer, she had ducked back into the rows of clothing.

The trousers were an egg-shell white colour. Ianto thought it could've been worse. It still hurt his eyes to look at the Doctor.

"Those aren't bright enough," the Doctor called after Rose before he tried to take them away from Ianto.

Ianto held them away from him, glad he more than equalled the Doctor in height. He was not going to let the Doctor find a pair for him. He wanted to preserve just a little bit of his dignity.

"Baby steps, Doctor, little steps, we don't want to damage the poor man, do we?" Rose called out, finally pushing the hangers with clothes aside, joining them. She was wearing a vibrantly purple dress with an equally loud pink shawl and matching shoes.

"I'm going to feel a bit underdressed compared to the two of you, aren't I?" Ianto asked dryly.

Rose laughed and nodded, twirling twice with the skirt billowing around her legs. Ianto didn't miss the almost wistful look on the Doctor's face. He had been wondering about their relationship, but he was too polite to even consider asking either of them. Ianto was pulled back to reality as Rose came over to him, pulling out a lime green silk scarf. Standing on her toes, she tied it around his neck. Ianto caught his own reflection in the mirror. He was still wearing his dark shirt and trousers and the scarf looked so strange on him he had to muffle a laugh behind his hand. Nodding, he looked from one to the other. "I'll get changed, shall I?"

Rose clapped her hands and nodded.

Ianto undid the first button of his shirt, stopping as he noticed he still had an audience. "I eh... are you going to stare at me while I change?" he asked incredulously.

"Do you mind?" the Doctor asked with a surprised expression.

"Of course!" Ianto exclaimed.

"You've been travelling with Jack for several months and you're shy about dropping your clothes in company?" Rose asked, looking even more surprised.

Ianto felt his face heat again. It wasn't the same, but how the heck was he supposed to explain that?

The Doctor seemed to take pity on him, putting his hand on the shoulder of a disappointed Rose, steering her out of the room. "Well, we have to get ready for the landing, Ianto, join us when you're ready."

Ianto took a deep breath, sending the Doctor a silent thank you. "I will, sir."

"And drop the sir," the Doctor called back as they left. "That _will_ go to my head."

Ianto laughed and stared at the outfit he was supposed to wear. Oh hell, it could've been much, much worse.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto closed the door of the TARDIS behind them, shaking his head as he watched the Doctor run straight for the console. How did the man manage to anger people who were supposedly renowned for being the nicest people in the galaxy?

"It's a gift," Rose said to him, as if she knew exactly what was going through his mind. "You'll get used to it and eventually, you'll realize it's all part of the fun."

"We did have fun, didn't we?" Ianto said, fighting the grin threatening to take over his face. He felt the, by now, familiar hum of the TARDIS as she powered up.

"Oh," said the Doctor, watching something on one of the monitors.

"Something wrong?" Rose called out, stopping on her way across the room.

Ianto was itching to get out of the brightly coloured clothes, but he hesitated as well. Not that he couldn't find his way to the dressing room, but he didn't really like the frown on the Doctor's face.

"There's a message," the Doctor began, then hmpf'ed. "From Jack," he finally said.

Ianto fought his urge to run over to the console to see what the message might be. He didn't want to seem eager, didn't want to look like he didn't enjoy his time with Rose and the Doctor. "What's it say?" he asked warily. What if Jack _was_ in trouble? What if, even worse, Jack didn't want him back and had left on purpose? That would be a slap in the face.

"It doesn't say much," the Doctor admitted. "Just that he's a bit busy at the moment and glad that we're looking after you. That he would like for me to take you home if that's what you want."

Heart sinking, Ianto felt the joy and adrenaline from earlier seep out of him. "That's it? He expects me to just go home?"

The Doctor didn't do pity, but the look on his face was horrifyingly close to it. "I'm afraid so," he said quietly. He tried to turn his expression from a frown into a smile and although it was a bit wobbly, he did manage to pull one of his lightning mood changes... more or less. "I for one don't mind you staying on with us for a little longer, Ianto."

"Oh yes," Rose said, her delight wiping away her frown. Almost.

Ianto appreciated their attempt at levity, and thankfully he was good at hiding his own reaction. So, Jack was... busy. No explanation, no nothing, no thanks for the sex and have a nice life.

"So," he said, plastering on a smile. "Where are we going next? And is anyone else up for a cuppa?"

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto thought he'd never been in a better shape _ever_. He felt, that no matter where they went with the Doctor, they ended up, at some point, running away, or even worse, toward danger. The most scary thing, though? Ianto was beginning not only to get used to it, but he was almost enjoying the rush. It was almost as if the madness that seemed to on occasion take possession of Rose and the Doctor was... well, contagious.

Leaning against the console, trying to catch his breath, Ianto's eyes met Rose's and he couldn't help but matc her wide grin.

"So, Doctor," Ianto said, finally able to breathe normally again. "What's the next destination?" He focused completely on the next trip. If he didn't, he'd end up cleaning the TARDIS again - like he had a few days earlier. The Doctor had put a stop to that, horrified of the 'chaos' as he'd referred to it as. Obviously the Doctor preferred his own level of chaos and any change of that was unwelcome. Even if Ianto thought it wouldn't hurt cleaning the place every once in a while. Besides, the TARDIS had seemed to enjoy it.

"Hmm," the Doctor said, watching them both, his smile widening all of the sudden. "I know just the place. Spas, massage parlours, beautiful nature - just what we need to wind down. No running for a bit, eh?"

Before either of the companions could react, the Doctor was hopping madly around the console, hitting and kicking various levers.

Ianto shook his head but didn't manage to strangle the small chuckle that escaped him. There he was, feeling down because he'd allowed himself to get a little too attached to Jack and followed him to the stars. Why? He should be glad that he now had the opportunity to travel with the Doctor and Rose. For one thing, it would be even more insane and crazy than anything he'd been through with Jack.

It would be the adventure of a life time. Ianto squashed any feelings and longings for things that might've been and could've become. He was better off in the TARDIS where they seemed to appreciate his company.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto blew out his breath as he dropped down on his bed. He was utterly knackered and needed rest. The past few days had been even more insane than he could have possibly imagined. The Doctor had promised Rose and him a trip to a lovely little planet where... well, it had sounded good at the time. The problem was that the TARDIS had materialized in the middle of a laboratory set up for a genetic experiment that, according to the Doctor, wasn't supposed to happen for another hundred years. Of course the Doctor had insisted on getting to the bottom of that little temporal mystery.

Even Rose had looked a little worse for wear when they had finally managed to set things right. As the Doctor had said, it wasn't up to them to solve the problems fully, but it would only be right to bring the timeline back on track and stop whatever it was interfering with it in the first place. Ianto had long since stopped trying to figure out when the Doctor deemed it right to interfere in the time stream. Sometimes he wondered if it was simply a choice the alien made when the TARDIS did a jump he hadn't planned on.

Ianto forced himself to his feet, undressed and slid under the covers. He could do with a shower, which he would get when he'd rested... just needed to close his eyes for a moment or two.

When Ianto opened his eyes again, they felt gritty and he was still tired. Checking his watch he had to laugh. It wasn't as if time was time as one would know it - not there aboard the TARDIS. Still, he'd slept for some five hours. His mouth tasted like sewer and it felt like he had fur on his teeth.

Thoroughly disgusted with himself, Ianto pushed his covers off, shivering a little in the chill air as the warmth of the bed was leeched out of him. "I wouldn't mind terribly if you cranked the heat up a bit," he mumbled to the room.

When he turned on the hot water of his shower, he smiled to himself. The air was already warming more than a little. "Thank you," he said, stepping in under the warm spray. It felt good washing the grit and sleep from his eyes. Also, the water seemed to be loosening muscles he hadn't even been aware of being tense.

It should be so bloody great aboard the TARDIS, and Ianto had to admit, it was fun, it was exciting and adventurous... but it wasn't all he wanted and no matter how much he told himself off for being greedy, he knew it would come to an end soon. He'd hoped that travelling with the Doctor and Rose would mean that he could forget Jack, that he'd eventually get used to the tight knot in his chest.

Ianto leaned his head against the cool tiles. "I mean no disrespect," he said quietly. "You are so much more than Jack's ship, but I miss him."

There, it was out, he'd admitted it, even if the only one to hear him was the ship. If she was even listening. Ianto quickly washed and turned off the shower. Any other time his body would be insisting he carry on his thoughts about Jack. Although, seriously, he hadn't even had a good wank in ages. Every time he tried, his thoughts would go to Jack, and Ianto was exactly stubborn enough to not give Jack the satisfaction of being the only thing that could bring Ianto off.

Never mind that Jack would never know. That wasn't the point.

Towelling off briskly, he brushed his teeth and went back into his bedroom to put on a pair of clean boxer shorts. The room was nice enough, big and airy, but... damn, here he was, having the adventure of a lifetime and he was feeling whiny and ... well, heartbroken might be the wrong term. Ianto still refused to admit to himself just how much Jack had come to mean to him. Really, he was simply still annoyed about being left behind on a strange planet.

Ianto put a hand on the wall above the head of his bed. "I'm not fooling anyone, am I?" he asked quietly, feeling the wall pulse under the palm of his hand. Letting go, he slipped back under the covers. It was still early morning and he really didn't feel like getting up and out of bed.

Unfortunately, sleep didn't seem to want to come back, and Ianto ended up on his stomach, face buried in his pillow, his thoughts going off in many directions, although they kept coming back to the same damned thing. Captain Jack Bloody Harkness, the bane of his sanity it seemed.

Ianto felt a little twitch of guilt. Rose had asked him last night, to go with her to the market on Trillius 5 where the Doctor had decided to take them next. Trust him to be the wet blanket, but he just couldn't drag himself up and out of the TARDIS, who seemed to have caught on to his mood, because he hadn't been the one who'd dimmed the light in the room. It wasn't dark, just... it fit his mood very well.

The door to his room slid open and he heard Rose clearing her throat. "Ianto, you can't stay in here all day."

Ianto didn't lift his head. "Why not?" he replied, words muffled by the pillow.

"Because sulking doesn't become you - it never becomes anyone," Rose said, jumping up on the bed, making it move under Ianto, who didn't feel like putting up a facade just to look at her. So he stayed face down, not caring that he was only wearing a pair of boxer briefs.

Ianto turned his head a little, but he still didn't look at her. He focused on the folds in his covers and sheets. Crinkled and messy, just like his life.

"God, you brood, don't you?" Rose said quietly. "He's not worth it, you know."

Ianto didn't have to ask her who she was talking about. "It's not his fault," Ianto said quietly. "I mean, yes, he stranded me, but he never promised me a set period for the trip, nor did he ever offer anything but sex and adventure."

Rose's fingers slid through his hair, and Ianto closed his eyes. He hadn't had anyone touch him since Jack. Not like that. "He can be sweet and he's a great guy most of the time," she admitted, "but he can be such a wanker sometimes."

Ianto laughed into the pillow. "In more ways than one," he croaked out.

"Oi," Rose said, slapping him playfully on the head. "I don't need to hear about Jack's sexcapades, thank you very much."

Ianto laughed again. Still, he kept his head down. Rose was good at lifting his spirit most days, but even she couldn't work miracles. "I'll be okay again," he said quietly. "I just need some time."

"No, it's not allowed to brood aboard the TARDIS."

Ianto stiffened and felt heat flush his face. Just what he needed. The bed bounced insanely as the Doctor joined them, landing heavily on the other side of Ianto. Maybe if Ianto stayed still, they'd grow tired of poking him and go away.

The Doctor shifted and moved around for a moment, then seemed to find a comfortable position. "Nice bouncy bed," he said conversationally. "I guess that means she likes you, you know... the TARDIS. She gives you a lot of lovely things, a spacious bedroom, a big bed..."

Still refusing to answer, Ianto stayed face down in the pillow.

"You clean and clean, she loves that you know. I can't say I do, because I prefer to have a bit of order in my chaos and your tidiness messes that up, but I'm not one to start arguing with the TARDIS... I can't say I've ever heard her purr before either." There was a moment of silence, then the Doctor bounced up and down again. "Come now," the Doctor continued. "It really doesn't suit you being so emu."

Rose's laugh broke the tension and Ianto closed his eyes. "It's 'emo' and I'm not." Finally putting his hands flat on the bed and lifting himself up from the safety of his pillow, Ianto yelped as something soft hit him over the head.

Slowly turning his head, Ianto looked at Rose, who sat there looking about as innocent as the devil, a pillow in her hand. With a disbelieving laugh, Ianto picked up his pillow and smacked her with it. Or tried to, because she let herself fall back, avoiding getting hit.

"Now, now, children," the Doctor chided them.

Ianto turned his head and found the Doctor sitting cross-legged on the bed. Looking back at Rose, he shared a grin with her. In unspoken agreement, they both hit the Doctor at the same time, making the Time Lord splutter with indignity.

Ianto pulled back to sit next to Rose, staring at the Doctor who was sitting in the middle of a small flurry of feathers. Ianto looked down at the one he was holding, noticing the torn edges. Oh. That would explain it.

The Doctor looked a little shell shocked. Then he blinked, once, twice... "You do know this means war, right?" he said quietly, reaching out for one of the pillows and much to Ianto's surprise, a moment later, the Doctor howled menacingly, brandishing a pillow over his head with which he hit Ianto squarely in the face a split second later.

War was a mild term for what unfolded a moment later. The Doctor forced him down on the bed, straddling his thighs, pummelling him with his pillow. All the while, Rose was trying to push him off, having a hard time both swinging her pillow as well as laughing.

Ianto felt too high from laughing and fighting back, that he didn't at first feel the embarrassment as the adrenaline soared through his body, making him hard. Tumbling about in his bed with two warm bodies, his own punishing him for not having been touched and pleasured in a while.

Eventually, Ianto found himself at the core of a very cosy pile of warm bodies and he couldn't keep fighting back, he was laughing far too hard to be of any use. Behind him, Rose was curling around his back, all warm and soft. Heaving for breath, Ianto closed his eyes, realizing that the fingers carding through his hair were the Doctor's, as was the chest under his head.

Ianto felt heat in his face and knew his cheeks would be flushing. How could he not react? He felt far too drained to be bothered by the fact that Rose had been more than flushed as well during the fight and even the Doctor had been hard against Ianto when they had fought for the upper hand, feathers flying through the air.

Sometimes he wondered if Rose and the Doctor would ever resolve their tension. If not, he wasn't sure he could handle staying with them much longer. His own frustration was more than enough for him to handle.

As they wound down, silence filling the room, Ianto closed his eyes and drifted as his breathing returned to normal. The soothing stroking of his hair was almost lulling him to sleep.

The Doctor's soft voice pulled Ianto back, enough to pay attention. "Stay with us for as long as you want to."

Ianto closed his eyes and fought the lump in his throat.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto found it almost scary how much attention the Doctor paid him after the little impromptu pillow fight - he'd grown used to Rose worrying about him, but having a time travelling alien with sure signs of insanity watching him constantly... well, it was more than a little unnerving.

"Ianto!"

Nearly spilling the cup of tea he had been attempting to drink, Ianto rolled his eyes and turned around to find the Doctor leaning against the doorjamb to the small kitchen. Ianto had long since learned that those few times he wanted tea, he could kiss it goodbye if the Doctor came anywhere near him. The cup always ended up in alien hands instead.

"Yes, Doctor?" Ianto replied pleasantly, wondering what crazy ideas he was brewing up this time.

"Have you ever fenced?" the Doctor asked, eyes shining and a grin as wide as the Cheshire cat's. That Ianto could imagine the man with feline ears and tail only spoke of how much craziness he'd become accustomed to.

"Briefly, when I was at uni," Ianto admitted, wondering what exactly that admission would get him dragged into.

"Ah, even better," the Doctor said, pulling two epees out from nowhere Ianto could see, holding one of them, hilt first, for Ianto to take.

However it happened, before Ianto knew it, he was standing there, minus tea but with a weapon in his hand.

"Whoa, good cuppa!" The Doctor's voice drifted down the corridor outside and Ianto stared at the epee. "Don't dawdle, d'Artagnan. I'm expecting you in ten minutes in the exercise room."

Ianto stared at the epee, then at the ceiling. "I didn't know we had an exercise room," he said out loud. "I hope you can assist me in locating it."

Outside in the corridor the light dimmed to one side, while the other grew lighter. Ianto grinned as he left the kitchen and turned down the better lit part. Well, when he did leave the Doctor and Rose, he would most definitely miss the TARDIS and her quirks.

If anyone had told him, a year ago, that he'd find himself on the trip of his life, that he'd get dumped by the best looking arse in the universe and that he'd be having a fencing lesson with a Time Lord, all within the span of half a year? He'd have offered them the phone number of a well-respected psychologist.

Or possibly the number of the guy from uni with the stash of funny pills.

"Come now, Mr. Jones, you are better than that." The Doctor circled him, his own epee brandished before him.

Ianto grinned. They'd been at it for more than an hour and he felt like he was using muscles that he'd completely forgotten he had. Added to this, of course, was the Doctor's complete disregard of any rules. It was like a strange mixture of what Ianto remembered from university, coupled with something that had to be street rules in some distant galaxy. The outcome? Ianto was quickly learning to expect the unexpected and watch his arse.

The latter was more true than he'd like to admit. The Doctor's epee stung whenever it swiped at his arse, making Ianto jump out of harm's way, accompanied by laughter - both Rose's and the Doctor's.

Sitting on a chair by the wall, Rose cheered them on, obviously quite amused by the little game of fencing that the Doctor had instigated. Ianto was more than entertained himself. He was having fun, and it didn't involve running away from people who wanted to kill them.

"Is there any reason why you chose to fence all of a sudden?" Ianto asked as he kept his eyes on the Doctor.

"Nah, just thought you'd like the exercise and I had a hankering for flexing my fighting hand." The Doctor grinned maniacally as he launched at Ianto who caught and deflected the attack easily enough.

Ianto laughed and nodded. He wasn't going to complain. It did feel good, the exercise, the adrenaline rush. Although... his body seemed to be thrumming with something else, something he'd have pursued if his opponent had been Jack instead of the Doctor. The cheeky grin and occasional close bodily contact with the Doctor didn't exactly help and Ianto knew he was growing harder by the minute.

"Isn't one of you dashing gents going to finish the other off so we can have some dinner and discuss our next destination?" Rose called out to them.

The Doctor fell back for a moment, then moved toward Ianto again. "I figured we could do with a little trip back in time," the Doctor mused. "I have a need for some information that only the great library of Alexandria can provide."

Ianto's launch forward was broken at those words. The library of Alexandria? That was like... hell, alien colonies of the future was one thing, but going back to the Earth's past, to... Ianto realized his mistake at the same moment as the Doctor's blade twisted and Ianto's epee flew across the room to hit the floor.

"Don't let yourself be so easily distracted, Mr. Jones," the Doctor told him as he picked the epee up. "And what was that about dinner?" Turning on his heel, he almost seemed to bounce out of the room, Rose following him with a wide grin and Ianto shaking his head at the lightning change. If he knew them right, dinner would take some time, a little good natured bickering and that would give him plenty of time for a cold shower and change of clothes. Adjusting himself, Ianto exited the room as well.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto smiled to himself and pretended he didn't know why he was being offered a trip that was so perfectly tailored for him. It was a bit funny, though. Yes, he'd been feeling down lately, yes, he missed Jack, even if he _was_ having fun with Rose and the Doctor. What was so amusing was that the Doctor had decided that their next stop would be the Library of Alexandria. He had said he had some things he wanted to research but from his and Rose's whispered conversation, she was calling the Doctor on his choice of destination - obviously amused herself and quite convinced that the choice was done to lift Ianto's mood and not because they needed any sort of information.

It wasn't really all that bad that they were trying to cheer him up, and Ianto had to admit that visiting the library would be absolutely fantastic. Not that it would make him forget Jack, but at least they were trying and who knew? Maybe he could find some nice librarian and stay behind. It wasn't entirely impossible.

Someone nice and calm, and as unlike Jack Bloody Harkness as possible.

The TARDIS hummed as the Doctor finished his conversation with Rose and began twisting knobs and flicking levers. Rose ran over to Ianto and took his arm, giving him a broad smile.

Ianto watched the Doctor with a small smile, while the Time Lord ran around, banging this and that with a hammer. However, the Doctor's happy expression turned to a frown as the TARDIS began shaking and the Doctor stopped looking as if he was having a whole lot of fun. Then the TARDIS shook violently and the soft light of the interior turned alarmingly purple, the brightness almost blinding.

The whole world seemed to explode around them and for a moment, Ianto lost all sense of what was up or down, left or right. The grid under his feet disappeared and the whiteness turned black.

When he could finally see again, Ianto found himself on the floor with Rose clinging to him. They looked at each other and as one they struggled to their feet.

"Doctor!?" Rose called out as neither of them could see him.

There was a groan from somewhere on the other side of the console and they rushed over to find the Doctor flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling.

"Are you alright, Doctor?" Ianto asked, offering him a hand up.

The Doctor took his hand and stood, wobbling a little. "Yes, I'm quite sure I am."

"What happened?" Rose asked, turning from the Doctor to the console. Nothing looked out of place.

"I don't know," the Doctor replied as he joined her. "The TARDIS went off as she normally does, but something threw her off course."

"So when we open the door, we won't be at the Library of Alexandria," Ianto said drily. Somehow he shouldn't be so surprised.

"No, I doubt that," the Doctor muttered as he checked the monitors, trying to figure out where they were.

"So, what threw her off course?" Rose asked curiously. Ianto tried to get a look at the console, but even after his time aboard the TARDIS the readings might as well have been Russian, because he couldn't make heads nor tails of them.

The Doctor raised first one eyebrow, then the other followed suit. "Well, I'll be..." he muttered.

"Doctor?" Ianto watched him carefully. He was a bit confused as the Doctor's expression turned from a frown into a broad smile. "Looks like the old girl picked up on a very specific pattern," he said. "Looks like the TARDIS tracked down our good Captain Harkness."

Ianto took a deep breath. For a moment he wasn't sure what to think or how to feel. The TARDIS had found Jack, just like that. "Is he..." Ianto tried to ask, but his throat felt parched and it was almost impossible to get the words out.

"He's alive, but I'm not sure if everything is alright." The Doctor pulled a few levers, turned a few controls then nodded slowly. "I can't quite make out if this planet's timeline is changing because of Jack, but I wouldn't put it past him - he means well, but sometimes things just don't pan out."

"What's wrong with the timeline?" Rose asked, "and what are we going to do about it?"

Ianto hid a smile. He knew how this went, and although he wasn't unfamiliar with their methods, his own priorities had just changed.

"Mr. Jones, Miss Tyler," The Doctor said with a huge grin. "It looks to me like we have a presidential assassination to prevent."

Ianto nodded slowly. "I'd like to make a suggestion, Doctor, if I might."

~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Ianto checked with the map that the Doctor had downloaded to his mobile. He was still on the right track. The TARDIS had settled down somewhere underground and according the readings, they were in some very old underground levels of a military base. Ianto was careful and focused on where he was going. The Doctor had told him that the society they were in had once been high tech, but wars had almost obliterated the whole population. Rebuilding, it had reverted back to older ways, with a lot less technology.

The tunnel Ianto was in obviously hadn't been used in ages. The walls were cracked and roots were growing through the concrete. There was no light and the torch he was carrying, cast a lonely beam through the darkness.

Here and there dirt fell from the ceiling, making the air dusty. It was stale and Ianto fought off the urge to sneeze and his eyes itched. He focused on where he was going and went as fast as he dared, as fast as the old tunnel allowed. Roots seemed to be grappling for his feet, trying to trip him.

For the longest time the path led him forward, and he watched the smaller side tunnels out of the corner of his eye, forcing himself to not let paranoia get the better of him. There was nothing there, lurking in the pitch black holes. The roots were even more prominent down those paths, hanging almost like a curtain in the openings.

Finally, the tunnel ended at the foot of a staircase. It was wide enough for five or six people to walk shoulder to shoulder, but the steps were broken in several places, warning Ianto that he'd have to watch his step. Keeping to the side, along the wall, Ianto began his ascent.

If not for the slight changes of the tunnel, Ianto would have had a rush of deja-vu. Same straight tunnel with side tunnels, once again overgrown with roots, though perhaps... a little less, in places looking as if they had been hacked off. Same structure of the place, the long tunnel leading to yet another partly eroded staircase.

Ianto caught himself wondering if he was perhaps trapped in a dream, bound to walk the same path for eternity... or at least until he woke up.

At the top of the next staircase, Ianto could get no further. He ran his hand over the wall of boxes barring his way forward.

Searching back and forth with both torch and hands, trying to make out any uneven surface that would allow him to shift the boxes, Ianto focused on finding a way forward. Finally he managed to get a weak hold on an edge of one of the top boxes. Patience, he told himself, wriggling the box until he could pull it out and put it down, the tips of his fingers feeling almost numb.

Once he had three boxes out of his way, he squeezed through. He could make out the low lighting of the tunnel ahead of him. Where there had been darkness before, this part seemed to have some sort of artificial light source and although Ianto didn't have the knowledge and experience, he figured it was as old as the tunnels themselves, because here and there were other light sources, similar to ordinary light bulbs back on Earth, a strange mismatch of old and new. Looking around, he could see that the tunnel had been turned into storage, the side tunnels filled with unmarked boxes as well. Ianto figured he had been lucky to only have to move through one row of boxes.

This tunnel looked more like it was being maintained, the walls having been strengthened with metal beams here and there. Ianto walked the tunnel, turning off the torch, making his way carefully between columns of stacked boxes. Not much to his surprise, he found another staircase at the end of the tunnel. Ianto sighed but made his way upwards, noticing that the original light sources were getting fewer, the stronger and newer lights were illuminating the staircase much better and the steps were in a fairly good state, at least not crumbling under his feet.

Ianto allowed himself a relieved grin as he came to the top of the stairs. He emerged in a T-intersection. It was wider, and higher to the ceiling. And there were people.

He stayed where he was, in the shadows of the staircase. Even though there was light there, it was kept to a lower level than the path ahead. He crouched down and then he noticed it. There were alcoves along the other side of the tunnel, every few steps. Some were covered by curtains, others weren't. Ianto stayed where he was while two guards appeared, deep in conversation, walking by.

They wore identical uniforms, white save for lines of black woven with silver thread at the cuffs and along the lining and neck. At their waists they carried a short dagger and... Ianto almost laughed out loud and wondered if the Doctor had a sixth sense. The weapon hanging at their hips was too much like an epee for it to be a coincidence.

It seemed the TARDIS translation circuit was still working, even with the distance between them. He caught bits and pieces of the quiet conversation, smiling as he heard talk of an unruly prisoner. He didn't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out who that was.

Once the guards were out of sight, Ianto held his breath, listening hard, trying to hear if others were on their way. Letting his breath out slowly, Ianto left his hideout, hurried along the wall, checking one last time as he quickly crossed the tunnel, slipping inside an open alcove. Hurriedly he untied the sash to let the curtain cover the opening.

There was little light getting inside the alcove, revealing shelves with light bulbs and rolls of toilet paper. Ianto looked down at the rope in his hand and a grin curved his lips upward.

He had the rope, now to find someone to tie up.

Holding the edge of the curtain far enough from the wall to look outside, he watched guard after guard pass. Some were on their own, some were in groups. Patience was all he had, although he knew that if he waited for too long, the Doctor and Rose would set something off that would cause havoc as usual.

So patience was good, but a little more luck would be better.

As if someone had heard him, another guard came down the tunnel and Ianto steeled himself, quickly making a decision. The uniform would fit, he had no doubt about that - his father had been a good teacher.

Ianto pushed the curtain aside, stepped out behind the guard and put the rope around his neck, careful not to actually strangle him. He didn't allow himself to doubt what he was doing and just went for it. The guard struggled, but Ianto dragged him into the alcove, letting the curtain fall back to hide them.

Holding on until the guard stopped struggling and lay still, Ianto checked his pulse and to his relief the man was only unconscious, not actually dead. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, he leaned back against the wall and took a moment to let himself see that it had gone well. Outside the curtain other guards were now passing and Ianto was sure, for a moment, that they could hear his heart beating out its tattoo.

Staring at the unconscious guard through the semi darkness of the alcove, Ianto made his decision. Off came the sneakers he was wearing, the shoelaces as well, his belt hit the floor with a clank loud enough to make him wince and stay still for a second or two. When no one outside seemed to have noticed the sound, he stripped off his own clothes and quickly undid the guard's uniform.

Carefully paying attention to how it had been done up, Ianto proceeded to strip the guard of the uniform. He put it on, only to find that his own boxer shorts could not help but show through the tight trousers. With a curse he stripped those off as well and donned the full uniform. Quickly he rolled up one his own socks and stuffed it into the mouth of the guard, strapping one shoelace around the man's head to keep it in place.

Picking up the rope, Ianto tied the guard up, secured his feet with his belt and rolled him into the corner of the alcove, hoping that he'd just bought himself enough time for finding Jack and getting the both of them out and back to the TARDIS.

Ianto checked the uniform one last time, hoping that he hadn't just stripped some very high ranking officer of his threads and thus would be expected to order people around in a fashion he had no idea how went.

Shaking his head, he decided that he'd cross that bridge if he ever got to it. The uniform was tight but surprisingly comfortable and Ianto triple checked the straps and what-nots before carefully pushing the curtain back just enough to allow him to see if the coast was clear. He stayed still as two guards walked by, quietly chatting between themselves and then for a while, there was no sound coming from the hallway and Ianto took his chance.

The uniform was startlingly white in the artificial lighting but Ianto refused to let the feeling of being fully exposed get to him. The Doctor had shown him Jack's whereabouts and Ianto was not going to chicken out at the last minute.

He owed himself getting Jack out. He wasn't about to let Jack get away with what he'd done, nor was he going to just go meekly back to Earth and live a life he knew would never be enough. At least not at this point in his timeline.

Ianto kept his face neutral as he walked along the corridor. He knew it was silly to think they could hear his runaway heartbeat, but as he passed one, then two guards, he sighed with relief. No one seemed to take notice of him as such, although there was a barely there nod from one of the guards which Ianto simply returned, too nervous to do anything else.

Finally, to his right, was the corridor he'd been looking for. At the end of it was one single, large room that had cell-like holes along three sides, all with bars in front of them.

Also, of course, there was a guard.

"What is your errand here?" the guard asked him, giving him a polite, if slightly inquisitive look.

"I am here to offer you assistance," Ianto said evenly.

"Why should I need assistance?" the guard asked, giving him a suspicious look. "We only have one prisoner at the moment, and although he is a nuisance, he is but one man."

Ianto strangled the urge to grin at that one and did not looking at the cell with the single occupant. "There is trouble up on the surface, in the middle of the city," Ianto replied. It wasn't a lie as such. There would be, if he knew the Doctor right. Trouble followed the Doctor around like a little, lost puppy... or perhaps that was the other way around.

The guard frowned, but at least he looked a little unsettled. Ianto wondered if he could maybe get him to leave, though perhaps...

"As you say," Ianto began. "There is but one prisoner, and he is locked up. If you worry, I can stay here and you can go check with the guards up on the surface."

"Ah, but surely I cannot leave you alone with this prisoner," the guards said, shaking his head. He didn't look as suspicious as before, but he obviously didn't want to leave Ianto alone with Jack.

"Why not?" Ianto asked. "Is he that dangerous?"

The man looked torn for moment, then beckoned Ianto forward. As Ianto leaned in, the man cast a quick look toward the cell holding one very blatantly staring Jack Harkness. "His words and behaviour are most improper," he shared in a near-whisper.

"How so?" Ianto asked, knowing perfectly well how improper Jack could be at times, but if he was to get Jack out, he would have to play along. He just had to hope that Jack wouldn't give him away in a fit of stubbornness or an untimely, rude comment.

"He suggested..." the guard began, then shook his head, looking absolutely mortified as he fidgeted.

"Some people simply aren't as civilized as others," Ianto said soothingly. "Let me take over, I have met his kind before and I know how to handle them."

"Oh, I bet you do," Jack's voice rang clearly through the room. Ianto winced. He had been wondering when Jack would join the conversation. Chancing a quick look at the cell, Ianto felt heat rise to his face. He'd missed Jack more than he cared to admit and looking at him, leaning forward against the bars, shirt undone from collar to waist... Ianto swallowed hard.

This really wasn't the time to get hot and heady thoughts of the carnal persuasion. Even if those were about Jack and about as unavoidable as death itself.

It was a short moment of inattention from Ianto and somehow the guard must have caught on to _something_, because the next thing Ianto knew, the man had drawn his rapier and held Ianto at point, staring at him with distaste and mistrust.

Ianto took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I take it we're done being civilized," he said quietly as he took a step back and drew his own weapon. He didn't dare take his eyes off his opponent for a moment, especially not to look at Jack, whose eyes Ianto felt burning into him, and it wasn't entirely improbable that he could sense the lust emanating from him as well.

The guard lunged at him and Ianto had to wonder if they were actually taught to fight with the rapiers because it struck him as more than a little clumsy. The attack, however, turned out to be nothing but a feint because a moment later, the tip of the rapier bit into Ianto's shoulder, ripping through cloth to draw blood from him.

Ianto cursed and tried to ignore Jack's yell. It wasn't easy, though. Jack's voice carried and the words varied between encouragement, curses thrown at the guard and compliments on Ianto's arse in a pair of tightly fitting white trousers.

Ianto could have done without any of that. It wasn't exactly good for his concentration, even if it was flattering to some extent.

"Jack, shut up," he yelled before parrying another attack, realizing he might not be in such an underdog position after all. He had to wonder if the Doctor had suggested fencing in a fit of foresight, because having learned to predict or at least handle the Doctor's crazy fencing style, Ianto found himself quite the match for the guard.

Even with the added experience, Ianto had to fall back once or twice. At one point he found himself backed up against the bars of Jack's cell and as his opponent took a moment to catch his breath, watching Ianto like a hawk, he in turn could hear Jack right behind him, breathing heavily.

"Do you have any idea how hot you look and how hard I am right now?" Jack whispered, hands reaching through the bars, sliding along Ianto's flanks.

"And if you don't stop now, Jack Harkness, you'll get me killed and where will that leave you?" Ianto replied, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice. Without waiting for another word from Jack, he attacked the guard and the fight was on again.

He had no feeling of how long they parried, moved, almost danced around each other. Rapier blades singing as they hit each other. In reality it couldn't have been more than a few minutes or Ianto was sure other guards would have come running, alarmed by the sound of fighting.

However, just as Ianto was getting more and more nervous, an explosion somewhere up above shook the underground complex, knocking loose plaster and rocks from the ceiling, raining dust and grit over them

Ianto took the chance as the guard's attention was diverted for a moment. He moved forward quickly and slammed the hilt of his weapon right into the man's face, hitting him hard enough to drop him with one move.

He checked the guard's pulse and to his relief the man wasn't dead. Ianto quickly searched the guard's belt and found a key. He wasn't sure what he'd have done if he hadn't found it, because even if he knew the theoretical idea behind picking a lock, he'd never had any experience with it.

Ianto stood and turned to stand in front of Jack's cell, watching Jack through the bars.

"Gonna let me out?" Jack's voice was a little deeper and rougher than normally.

"Are you going to behave yourself?" Ianto asked, raising an eyebrow and not hiding from Jack that he figured that would be a request Jack couldn't fulfil.

"Where's the Doctor and Rose?" Jack asked instead of answering, his eyes not leaving Ianto for a second.

"Avoid my question, why don't you?" Ianto said with a sigh. "They're taking care of a coup that shouldn't be happening."

"So I was right," Jack muttered to himself, for a moment not focusing on Ianto.

"Oh?" Ianto said, feeling a little less like a bug under a magnifying glass as Jack stopped staring.

"I thought there was something odd going on here, but I wasn't entirely sure." Jack shrugged. "It was as if this place felt slightly off kilter, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it."

"So you didn't cause it with your presence here?" Ianto asked, feeling a little happier that the Doctor had been wrong.

"Hey!" Jack gave him a slightly hurt look.

"What? It was the Doctor's theory, not mine, though I wouldn't have put it past you to fuck the wrong person at the wrong time and start a planetary war!" Ianto fought off the mortification of his exclamation and stubbornly met Jack's glare.

"Ianto..." Jack's cockiness all but vanished for a moment, his voice softening.

"Let's get out of here before anyone comes in here and tries to stop us." Ianto bent down and retrieved his rapier, reattaching it to the belt. He might have fiddled a little more than need be, but he felt unsettled that he'd lost his temper like that in front of Jack. It wasn't as if Jack had promised him forever and fidelity as a package deal.

"Ianto!" Jack's voice rose.

"No, not now," Ianto said sternly as he put the key in the lock, turning it until he heard the click as it engaged. Stepping back, he let the door swing open and waited for Jack to join him. He couldn't help glaring at Jack, who in turn looked like he wanted nothing more than to put Ianto over his knees for a bit of punishment.

And not for the fun kind of it either.

Ianto felt caught in the moment, locked in a battle of wills as neither of them seemed to be interested in backing down. Which was ridiculous, Ianto knew that, and still he couldn't bring himself to be the one to break it.

Suddenly Jack rushed forward and Ianto braced himself. However, where he'd for a split second expected Jack to push him up against the nearest flat surface, to touch and kiss him... he was instead pushed to the side and as he swung around, he watched the no longer unconscious guard thrust rapier forward, sliding through Jack's chest like a hot knife through butter.

Ianto yelled, though he had no idea what words were escaping him. He felt anger and bitterness well in him as he stumbled a little before he found his footing.

Jack was staring at the thin metal that had entered his body, and the guard looked like he'd won the grand prize as blood coloured Jack's chest. Jack coughed a few times and red stained his lips.

Ianto felt his body go cold, couldn't think straight, couldn't do anything but react to the attack with anger and adrenaline. His own rapier was once again in his hand and as the guard retracted the blade from Jack, Ianto moved forward and in one quick move, his own rapier went in through the guard's throat and out his neck.

The guard fell backwards, taking both weapons with him, but Ianto didn't care. He was already kneeling at Jack's side. He cradled Jack's body, not caring that his white uniform was quickly taking a bright red shade where Jack's blood coloured it.

Jack coughed and more blood welled from his mouth and all Ianto could do was try to hold him. There was nothing he could do to save him or even ease Jack's pain. He could see the guard's final convulsions out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't care all that mattered at that moment was that he'd found Jack again, only to lose him just as quickly.

Jack's body slowly stilled until there was not a twitch left. Ianto bowed his head, burying it against Jack's neck. The skin was still warm, still smelled of Jack, but it was a hollow shell.

"I thought you'd live forever," Ianto whispered in the silence. "The Doctor said so. And you go and get yourself killed, you bastard." The last came out a near sob, without any rancour at all. He couldn't bring himself to be angry with Jack for giving his life for him, but it still hurt holding his silent body in his arms.

"How the hell do you expect me to go on without you now?" he asked in a whisper as the first hot tear ran down his face. There was no answer, just the silence of the cells. There were no longer any noises coming from outside the cell section. Occasionally grit fell from the ceiling as the earlier explosion had obviously shaken quite a bit loose, drifting down.

Time seemed to have stopped and focused entirely on the two of them. Ianto leaned forward, pressing his lips to Jack's in a final act of defiance.

Time suddenly sped up, the body in his arms convulsed and Ianto's world was turned upside down again. Jack's hands came up, fingers clenching at Ianto's shoulders, digging painfully into flesh and muscles.

Staring down, Ianto couldn't tear his eyes from Jack's. Almost comically wide open, more white than normally visible. Ianto's hand worked on its own, scrabbling down Jack's body, slipping through the blood to find... perfectly healed skin. Not so much as scar tissue evident.

"Jack..." Ianto tried to say, but he wasn't sure what came out. His voice felt broken to pieces.

Jack gurgled something, then let go of Ianto and rolled onto his side, body shaking as he coughed and dry heaved.

Ianto pushed himself back, leaving Jack on the ground, scrabbling backwards until his back hit the rough brick wall. He fought to catch his breath, but air seemed to resist being pulled down into his lungs.

All he could do was stare at Jack, who was still curled up on the floor. Finally Jack got up onto his hands and knees, head hanging down as he coughed and spat a few times. Slowly he turned his head to look at Ianto.

A shiver ran down Ianto's spine. The look of sheer terror in Jack's eyes was enough to tear him out of his own fear and he launched himself forward, only to stop with his hand hovering over Jack's shoulder.

"Please tell me I didn't just die," Jack said, voice rough and broken.

Ianto finally reached out and for once it wasn't an embrace born out of lust as Jack almost bowled him over, his arms tight as a vice around Ianto's chest. Ianto buried his face against Jack's shoulder as he realized he was still shaking.

"I think you did," he replied. "You were dead, you weren't breathing..."

"But I'm breathing... I have a pulse..." Jack said quietly, voice barely audible as his face was scrunched up against Ianto's chest.

"I know," Ianto said quietly.

"When the Doctor said I was immortal... I didn't think he meant I could die but wouldn't stay dead..." Jack's voice seemed to have lost all of its usual cockiness.

"What was...," Ianto closed his eyes as he tried to get the question out. "What was it like?"

Jack shivered and held, if possible, even tighter onto Ianto. "I... can't put it into words, not right now... we should be trying to get out of here..."

Ianto shook his head to clear it. Jack was right, as obscene as the last few minutes had been, they had to get out, had to get back to the TARDIS. They would have to ask the Doctor about it later, because at this point their first priority would be to actually get out.

"Jack, come on." Ianto tried to get out of Jack's iron grip. "We have to get up in order to get out of here."

Jack's grip didn't seem to lessen for a moment, then finally one hand did loosen, and Ianto managed to get the both of them back on their feet, even if Jack was a little unsteady.

"The TARDIS is a few levels below us," Ianto said, but Jack shook his head, wincing as it obviously didn't help with his dizziness. "I don't want to leave my ship behind."

Suddenly the silence was broken by the earshattering howl of an alarm. Outside the cell section he could hear guards running and yelling, but he couldn't quite make out what they were saying. At least no one was entering the cell section and Ianto figured they should be thankful for small mercies.

More plaster and grit drifted from the ceiling and Ianto coughed into his free hand, trying to ignore the blood colouring his skin.

"Where's the ship?" he asked, trying to keep calm.

"I've got her parked and cloaked outside the city walls," Jack said, the dust making him sneeze.

"We can't risk going up through the city if there's been explosions," Ianto argued. "We should move down toward the TARDIS, to meet up with the Doctor and Rose."

"I would like to see them again," Jack agreed calmly and Ianto realized that Jack was finding his footing again, and that Ianto would have very little time before he would be as headstrong as he always was.

"Jack..." he said, putting as much of a warning into his tone as he could.

"Ianto, why do you think I was here in the first place?" Jack stared at him, and Ianto could tell that the question was important to Jack.

"You said you thought there was something wrong here," Ianto replied slowly.

Jack nodded. "But why would I try to fix it?"

"Because you are a good man and you ..." he halted for a moment, watching Jack. "You want the Doctor to be proud of you."

Jack closed his eyes and shook his head. "That's a very little part of it. I didn't do this for the Doctor, Ianto. I did it for you, to make you see I'm good enough, even if I can't compete with the Doctor."

"But why do this for me?" Ianto felt more confused and wondered if he'd hit his head.

"I thought you wanted to stay with the Doctor," Jack said, barely audible, his cheeks flushing a little. "I thought..."

"Oh you bloody idiot," Ianto exclaimed, finally understanding what Jack was getting at.

Jack stared at him in surprise, the fingers of one hand still clenching Ianto's uniform jacket.

Ianto rolled his eyes and planted a quick kiss on Jack's lips, trying to ignore the taste. "I am going to kick your arse from here to the dark side of the moon," Ianto threatened. "And don't for one moment think I'll be forgetting about this foolish quest of yours or the fact that _you_ left me behind - I just don't think this is the time _or_ the place for this conversation."

Jack stared at him, then blinked rapidly. "Do you have any idea how hot you are when you're pissed?" he asked breathlessly.

"Oh god," Ianto groaned. "Give me strength," he muttered as he pulled out his mobile to check the map, not because he couldn't find his way back to the TARDIS without it, but because he needed to focus on something that wasn't Jack.

With a frown he noticed the red crosses on the map. They hadn't been there before and two of them were placed right in the middle of their way back. With a sinking heart, Ianto zoomed in on the map and the TARDIS pulled up a short but heartbreaking explanation. The tunnels had collapsed in more than one place, making it impossible for them to return to the TARDIS.

Ianto closed his eyes and bit back a curse. "It looks like we might have to find your ship after all," he admitted. "I'm going to see if I can catch Rose on the mobile and let her know." Ianto hit speed dial and waited while the phone rang, but no one picked it up. "Damn, I hope they're just busy right now, and that nothing's happened to them," Ianto mumbled to himself.

Jack's hand slid from the uniform jacket to fit around Ianto's elbow, giving it a quick squeeze, but much to Ianto's pleasure Jack didn't seem to want to let go of him at the moment.

"Don't worry," Jack assured him. "They'll be fine."

Ianto nodded absentmindedly as he punched in a quick text message for Rose so that she might know that they were okay and heading toward another way out. "Are you sure you can find the ship again?" Ianto asked as he turned his attention back to Jack.

Jack nodded and shook his hand in front of Ianto's face, more specifically, his wrist with the vortex manipulator. "I can remote control the ship."

Ianto wanted to argue. They couldn't call the ship down into the middle of the city above, but he figured he'd take that argument with Jack when they had to, because at that very moment, all he wanted to do was get up and into some fresh air where he couldn't constantly smell blood. He tried hard not to look at the dead body on the floor and even harder to push down the guilt of having taken the life of another sentient being.

"We'll have that talk when we get out of here," Ianto grumbled as he checked the passage outside to find no guards at all.

Before Ianto could take a step forward, Jack pulled him back and gave him a quick kiss. Nothing like the usual hot and heavy lip lock and Ianto found himself staring at Jack when he took a step back.

"What?!" Jack gave him an almost embarrassed look. "I'm glad to have you back."

Ianto hid a smile as he grabbed Jack's hand and left the cell section.

The first part of their escape was mostly uneventful as it seemed all the guards had headed upward after the explosions and the alarm. Ianto could only guess at what had happened. At least having to deal with escaping, it seemed to bring out a more clearheaded Jack, even if his hands never let go of Ianto for more than a second or two at a time. Ianto could foresee that becoming a problem if it persisted, but for the time being he needed the reassurance as well as Jack did. He tried not to think too much about the fact that Jack had been dead a short while ago.

They followed one of the better lighted paths and they occasionally had to dug into the darker side tunnels as they could hear guards approaching. Ianto noted how ragged most of them looked, soot streaking their faces, staining their white uniforms.

"I wonder how the Doctor and Rose are doing," Jack whispered in his ear. They'd been stuck hiding in a sidetunnel as they waited for the opportunity to cross to another intersection of the tunnels that would take them toward an exit.

Ianto shifted a little, trying to ignore that Jack was all but plastered up against his side, hand holding his in a vice grip. With a bit of wriggling, that unfortunately had Jack breathing a little faster in his ear, Ianto managed to work his mobile out of the confines of the uniform.

"Nothing so far," he whispered, a little worried as the display told him he had no messages. He did a quick double check with the map, and they were still following the correct path. Guards were still passing outside their hiding place with far too short intervals of time between them, so he decided he might as well get an answer or two while they waited.

"I need you to explain something to me," Ianto said quietly, turning his head to look Jack in the eye.

"What?" Jack asked, giving him a wary look.

There was no reason to sugar coat anything, as far as Ianto was concerned. "Why did you leave me behind?" he asked quietly, surprised that he managed to keep any sort of accusation out of his tone.

For a few seconds, there was no sound from Jack, but even in the very poor lighting, Ianto could tell he looked rather sheepish and if anyone had told Ianto he'd ever see that? He'd have thought them to be insane. Captain Jack Harkness was the epitome of self-assuredness and a poster boy for cockiness anywhere in the universe.

"I eh..." Jack stalled swallowing hard, staring down at the ground.

Ianto sighed. "For once, Jack... just say what it was - I mean, I wasn't entirely without means, I contacted the Doctor when I realized you'd gone."

Jack turned his head to check the passage and mumbled something that Ianto didn't quite catch. It seemed to involve something along the lines of that being the problem. Which only left Ianto feeling even more confused.

Shaking his head, Ianto slid a hand up to touch Jack's chin, gently turning his head around. "Don't think I'll be forgetting this. You're not getting rid of me that easily."

For a split second there was an almost hopeful look on Jack's face, then it slid into a more neutral look, though with a bit of a smile lingering at the corner of his mouth. "I think we're safe to cross the passage now," he just said, pulling Ianto along.

The passage they entered was darker than the others, it smelled dusty and cobwebs clung to Ianto's face. It obviously wasn't a section that was used all that much and it made Ianto breathe a little easier. Jack's hand was firm in his as he lead the way and Ianto didn't mind all that much. They would, according to the map, have to follow this tunnel for a while before it ended at a sort of emergency exit that looked like a steep staircase or a ladder. Thankfully there were no red marks on the map so they should be fine. Ianto could always hope.

Much of the tedious walk was spent in silence and for a while, Ianto tried to figure out why exactly Jack had left him behind. He'd seemed happy enough to see him, although that might be attributed to being let out of a cell he'd probably ended up in for being indecent in the first place.

It wasn't that Ianto hadn't been thinking long and hard about exactly that while travelling with the Doctor, but he hadn't had Jack around at that point to ask him and he found himself reluctant to form any theories and ask Jack while they were still trying to get out. There was an irrational fear of Jack repeating his earlier disappearing act, even though Ianto was sure Jack wouldn't leave him behind in the middle of a warzone.

Well, he was fairly sure, anyway.

Ianto kept his theories to himself as they moved along the tunnel, and eventually they came upon the ladder. Jack squeezed his hand before letting go to start his ascent. Ianto waited for him to get a little ahead before he followed. The more he told himself he shouldn't ask, the more he wanted to. Only, he didn't know how far his voice would carry and he couldn't risk their escape just because he was impatient.

The trek upward felt like it went on for hours, although Ianto was sure it couldn't be all that long. His arms were beginning to feel like lead and his calves were screaming at him, but upward they went.

Finally Jack whispered a quick warning that he was stopping, and Ianto wrapped an arm though the steps, leaning as much into them as he could to take the weight off his muscles.

*******

Ianto slid the mobile shut, letting out a sigh. "Rose says we should try to lay low for a while - the regime here is going to evacuate the inhabitants to shelters just as a security precaution."

"What's going on then?" Jack leaned back against the wall of the back entry of courtyard. It was dark and there was the sound of footsteps in the streets but they all faded into the distance.

"Jack...?" Ianto finally decided to hell with his own fears.

"Hmm?" Jack slipped his arm a little tighter around Ianto's waist as they waited for the street ahead to clear. The cool night air made Ianto shiver a little.

"You were going to come back for me, weren't you?" Ianto finally managed to ask. He was aware that he might be better off waiting until they were safe and sound aboard the ship, but his curiosity was eating at him and he felt like he was onto something.

Jack was quiet for a moment, then Ianto could feel him nod against his neck, breath warm and moist against his skin. "I wouldn't leave you behind."

Ianto took a deep breath. Time to test a theory then. "What did you expect to find when you returned?" he asked, his voice more steady than he'd expected.

Jack's arm's tightened a little but apart from that it seemed he was holding his breath for a long moment. Then he let it out, the air against Ianto's neck making him shiver. "What do you mean?" Jack asked quietly.

Ianto bit his lower lip and tried to tell himself that he was doing the right thing. "You thought you'd come back to find me thankful for your return, cold and shivering, afraid and hungry, above all, _needing_ you."

At least Jack met his eyes, didn't try to break eye contact at all. However Ianto couldn't quite decipher the look on his face but it didn't mean he wasn't onto the right idea.

For a moment it looked as if Jack was going to say something, then he shook his head and turned away to check the street before dragging Ianto along. They kept to the backstreets and Ianto was both glad that they were finally making way and slightly annoyed that Jack hadn't answered his accusations.

Ahead of them was an open sort of plaza and there didn't seem to be any people there. The perfect place to bring the ship down so they could board it and get away. Ianto stopped as Jack's hand in his tightened and kept him from going onwards.

"I..." Jack began, then cleared his throat, one hand in Ianto's and the other sliding up to hold Ianto's chin so he couldn't look away. Not that Ianto intended to.

"Just say it, Jack," Ianto urged quietly. No matter what Jack's answer would be, it would be more than he had to go on so far.

"I might not have done the right thing, but I _have_ missed you. I was stupid, but I..." Jack trailed off, and for the first time ever, Ianto had to label the look on Jack's face as a mixture of pleading and hopefulness. He hadn't thought that Jack was even capable of that look.

Ianto didn't say anything, didn't want to break whatever flow Jack had going, because there were words coming from Jack that Ianto hadn't dreamed he'd ever hear from him.

"I thought what we had was a fling like any other," Jack admitted sheepishly. Ianto took a deep breath and swallowed against the bile. "I just didn't count on you getting quite so much under my skin."

"You're so full of shite, Jack," Ianto said, trying to keep his hopes down. He'd expected the fling comment, but the rest... had come out of the blue.

"Don't you get it?!" Jack's grip on his arm tightened almost painfully. "I need you and I _want_ you. Not just for another week. Or another month, but for as long as you can give me."

Ianto had never really understood the term 'shell-shocked' until that very moment. He couldn't stop staring at Jack. "You're pulling my leg," Ianto said, not really intending to, but it sort of just slipped out.

Jack's face fell and Ianto instantly felt bad about it, although he didn't miss the mumbled "That's not what I'd like to pull," and he wasn't entirely sure what he was supposed to do. Either kiss or kick Jack. Then again, that reply had been so perfectly the Jack he had come to know.

Shaking his head, Ianto grabbed Jack before he could turn away. Pushing him up against the rough stone wall, Ianto held him in place.

"What?" was all Jack could get out before Ianto closed his lips over Jack's and did his level best to make Jack understand that he did want to stay with him, that he could handle the bullshit, but that he wasn't some submissive little kid with stars in his eyes.

Ianto lost himself in the kiss, holding Jack in place, even if he could feel the unbridled energy in Jack's body, the urge to move, to possess, to top. The slick feel of Jack's tongue fighting for the upper hand almost made Ianto laugh. Somehow he didn't think this was what Jack had signed up for back when he'd first picked Ianto up, but Ianto was damned if he was going to just submit and be Jack's little boy toy.

Breaking the kiss, Ianto leaned back enough to look at Jack's face in the light from the moon up above and grin at the slightly surprised expression he found there. "Just call the ship in and promise me you won't pull such a shitty trick, again."

Jack licked his lips, but at least the slightly hurt look from before had gone, in its stead a small smile and a softness to his eyes that Ianto hadn't seen before. The softness, however, soon disappeared, in its stead a smirk.

"So, does that mean we can have makeup sex?" he asked, looking and sounding for all the world like a little boy asking for a lollie.

Ianto rolled his eyes and tapped Jack's arm. "Just get the bloody ship down here," he grumbled, trying hard not to laugh as Jack flipped his vortex manipulator open with far more enthusiasm than needed.

In the end calling in the ship and setting it down took little time. Ianto felt a warmth flow through his body when the air shimmered for a moment. The ship. He'd loved the TARDIS and he sent her an appreciative thought but this ship was the one he'd been spending the most time onboard with Jack and he had some very happy memories.

"There's our ship," Jack breathed in his ear before opening the hatch and lowering it by use of his vortex manipulator.

Ianto stopped in his tracks, staring at Jack's back when the other man took a step forward. He wasn't sure if Jack had misspoken, but he sincerely hoped not. A grin threatened to split his face and he coughed lightly to keep from saying anything.

Jack turned around and gave him an odd look. "Are you coming?"

"You better believe it," Ianto said, finally allowing his mirth to show.

"What?" Jack asked, a little puzzled by Ianto's smile, which was just perfect in Ianto's opinion. Anytime he could keep Jack on his toes were good times.

"I like that," Ianto said, passing by Jack and letting his hand slide down to squeeze Jack's arse. "_Our_ ship," he said with a wink before stepping up onto the lift to wait for Jack.

Jack stood there staring at him for a moment. It looked like Ianto's little quip and grope had taken Jack by surprise and if Ianto wasn't entirely off, it looked like Jack was enjoying it.

A moment later when Jack was pressed up against him, Ianto had to change 'enjoy' to 'being turned on'. Because Jack was, and he wasn't trying to hide it. If anything, he made sure to press himself hard enough against Ianto that Ianto had no doubt as to the state of Jack's arousal. The rubbing was a bit of a giveaway as well.

"Jack, stop rubbing against me like a dog in heat," Ianto admonished, trying to keep a matching face. It wasn't easy, because it was all he could do to not strip Jack of his clothes right there, ascending on the ship's lift.

The lift stopped, and they were inside the ship. Ianto turned his head and found Jack's face close to his, breath hot on his lips. One of Jack's hands slid up along Ianto's arm until it came to a rest, a warm weight on Ianto's neck.

Ianto took a deep breath before nodding. "Computer, take us up and out of the atmosphere - set up a standard orbit." He waited for a moment, wondering if Jack had changed the voice authorisation so the computer would no longer react to his voice.

Jack's grin widened and Ianto relaxed a little as the computer chirped its affirmation.

"Now, what are you going to do?" Jack asked. "Little, innocent you all alone with the big bad me?"

Ianto groaned. "Oh, Jack. That was really cheesy."

"Well?" Jack slipped his free arm around Ianto's waist, pulling him closer. Ianto felt his breath hitch but he was damned if he was going to let Jack take over that easily.

"First, you'll strip. Then you'll undress me, clean the blood off the both of us," Ianto paused.

Jack swallowed hard, his breathing heavier and his eyes dilated. "And that done? What will be my reward, dear Ianto? Do I get to bend you over the console, over the pilot's seat or any other convenient surface?"

Ianto slipped both his hands up to hold Jack's head, keeping him still as he leaned forward to kiss Jack, forcing his way inside, letting Jack know that he was still in charge. "Your reward will be preparing yourself for me, before lying back on the bed, letting me take you and you'll damned well like it."

He was fully aware that such an angle wouldn't work with most people, but had learned a thing or two from Jack since he'd met him. And Ianto was many things, but above all, he was a quick learner.

The way Jack's breathing was shortening, the light tremors running through his body like a minor electrical current and Ianto knew he was onto something. Of course his own body was thrumming with want and he wouldn't have thought he'd have the patience to hold back, having been without Jack for so long.

Much to Ianto's surprise his body seemed to thrive on the burning, the tension, because as much as he felt the tight trousers restricting his erection, as much as he was sweating and on the edge of giving in, he wouldn't.

Ianto let go of Jack, resting his hands on his hips and raising an eyebrow. He didn't step back, didn't want to give Jack a moment to catch his breath. Jack, on the other hand, watched him silently for a long moment, then the dirtiest smile Ianto had ever witnessed curved those pretty lips upward.

It was a rush to witness the efficiency as Jack dropped his bloodied shirt, undid his trousers and bent at the knees to undo his boots. The only evidence that Jack was paying attention to him at the moment, was the slight lift of the eyes as Jack knelt in front of him, undoing the laces.

In no time Jack was standing again, completely naked and not in any way hampered by it. If anything it seemed nakedness made Jack even more relaxed. Ianto kept his face neutral, not letting Jack see how much his arousal was affecting Ianto.

Jack carefully undid Ianto's uniform, dropping the jacket to the floor, and once again kneeling in front of Ianto to take care of his boots. Jack tapped Ianto's calf and Ianto rewarded him by lifting his foot, almost groaning as Jack slipped the boot off, caressing his leg while doing so. The other leg was subjected to the same loving attention.

It almost finished Ianto off as Jack stayed on his knees in front of him as he undid Ianto's trousers and slipped them carefully down to avoid getting Ianto's erection caught in the waistband. The trousers were thrown aside and Jack slowly rose to his feet.

Jack pushed a panel and the washbasin slid out of the bulkhead and the cupboard opened. He stepped onto the towel Jack put down.

All Ianto wanted to do while Jack sponged him was to let his head fall back and enjoy it, but he knew if he did so, Jack would seize the moment and take over control. Ianto allowed himself a small grin as Jack thoroughly cleaned parts of him that couldn't possibly have been in contact with any blood.

"That's enough of cleaning for me, Jack. Clean the blood off yourself and get out the lube."

Jack shivered. "You're getting way too good at pushing all my buttons."

"Ah, but Jack," Ianto said with a wink. "I've only just begun. I am going to find buttons you don't even know you have." Ianto wondered if he was overdoing the porn lines, but the look of pure lust on Jack's face was more than enough to assure him he was doing the right thing. Maybe Jack needed it as much as Ianto did. Submitting himself to Ianto like this was quite possibly the only way to let Jack feel as if he was paying penance for what he'd done.

Ianto wasn't going to stop that sort of behaviour. If anything, he quite liked it that way. He knew he probably shouldn't judge Jack the way he did people from his own era. For all he had gathered from Jack about the man's own time, society was more than a little different from his own.

Seating himself in the pilot's seat, Ianto sat back and enjoyed watching Jack removing every trace of his own messy death. Unfortunately it triggered the memory and Ianto had to close his eyes for a moment, silently chanting that Jack was alive and well. Opening his eyes again, Ianto crooked a finger and beckoned Jack forward.

Jack came willingly, resting his hands on the armrests of the pilot's set, leaning in and nuzzling the side of Ianto's face. Ianto lifted his hand and put it over Jack's heart, the thu-thump letting him know that Jack was okay.

Ianto turned his head and whispered in Jack's ear. "Get the lube and prepare yourself for me."

Jack exhaled against his neck but pulled back, slowly moving back to their bed. Sitting back on it and halfway laying down, he slipped his hand into the compartment beside it and drew out a bottle of lube.

Ianto swallowed hard and spread his own legs as much as the seat allowed him. He focused on Jack and let his hands slide down over his chest and abdomen. He curled the fingers of one hand loosely around his cock and stroked it slowly back to hardness.

Jack made sure that Ianto could see what he was doing, the look of pure concentration on his face drew a moan from Ianto. "God, you're hot like that, Jack," he said quietly. "All laid out and all mine."

Managing to squeeze out a little more lube before dropping the tube to the floor, Jack reached out for him and Ianto was out of his seat in no time, stalking over to the bed. Putting his hands on the wall above the small enclosure, he bit his lower lip as Jack's slippery fingers coated his cock. He had to reach down and grip Jack's wrist before he got carried away.

"Jack... " Ianto tried to find enough breath to ask Jack to lay back. He didn't have to. Jack grinned up at him and scooted back on the bed, making room for Ianto to slip in on top of him. The shock of warm skin against his own made Ianto moan and he could feel Jack struggling to hold back as well.

Ianto pushed Jack's legs up and over his own shoulders. Looking down at Jack he had to smile. Jack answered it with one of his own and Ianto slipped a hand down to align himself with Jack's arse. The head of his cock slid against the slippery opening and Ianto bit his lower lip as he slowly pressed inside. For a moment he was sure it'd be over before it could even begin, but somehow he managed and Jack's drawn out groan as Ianto buried himself to the balls was worth every ounce of willpower that Ianto had to dredge up.

For a moment Ianto held himself back, staring down at Jack who had closed his eyes and wore a blissful look on his face. He drank in the sight and he was sure there were very few hotter sights in the universe than Jack Harkness laid out and completely surrendered to him.

Ianto planted one hand on the bed next to Jack's head, while the fingers of the other curled around Jack's erection. Slowly he began moving out a little before slamming hard forward again. Jack moaned and dug his heels into the small of Ianto's back.

Rubbing the pad of his thumb against the slit of Jack's dick, Ianto repeated the movement and Jack writhed underneath him, mumbling words and obscenities and threatening Ianto with bodily harm is he stopped what he was doing.

Ianto was in no state to hold back for much longer and he finally let himself go. Moving in and out a few times he could feel his own release building, the tightness around his cock drawing forth his climax, dragging it out of him. Ianto pressed forward, hard as the orgasm tore through him, his hand on Jack's cock tightening and increasing its movements.

"Ianto, please..." Jack didn't get anymore out before he almost arched off the bed, his growl turning to a drawn out moan as Ianto brought him to his climax, Ianto's mind drowning in the rush of endorphin, his nostrils full of what Jack claimed to be 51st century pheromones.

With a groan, Ianto collapsed on top of Jack, letting go of Jack's cock, fingers dragging through the mess Jack had made and he couldn't care less. "You okay?" he asked, licking his fingers, knowing perfectly well that it was the equivalent of waving a red flag in front of a bull.

"I will be," Jack answered with a small smile, eyes glued to Ianto's mouth. "Just give me a few minutes."

Ianto grinned and eased himself out of Jack, dropping bonelessly down on the bed next to Jack.

Jack didn't wait for him to settle before he rolled on top of him, pinning Ianto to the bed with his body. Ianto wasn't complaining, he quite enjoyed the weight and besides, he'd proven his point.

"Do you have any idea how much you turn me on?" Jack asked, his voice low and husky. "Do you have any idea how much I want to tie you to this bed and not let you out for a year or two?"

Ianto grinned up at him, putting a hand behind Jack's neck and another on Jack's arse, giving it loving squeeze. "I get the idea, I think, although you might want to remind me again. The cuffs are in the other compartment and as long as you feed me, I'm good."

Jack stared down at him, an incredulous look on his face. "Whatever did I do to deserve you?" he asked.

Ianto pulled Jack down for a long, wet kiss. "Consider it the twisted sense of humour of the universe," he said before shutting Jack up for good, or at least for a little while longer.

**Epilogue**

Ianto yawned and lay back on the bed, enjoying the breeze coming through the open doors. He could hear the ocean in the distance and the sound of Jack singing in the bathroom.

His mobile went off and Ianto smiled as he looked at the caller ID. "Hello, Rose," he greeted, stuffing another grape into his mouth.

_"How's the vacation?"_ Rose asked.

"It's nice," Ianto replied, grinning like an idiot and not caring about it. "How's the TARDIS?"

_"Oh, you know how it is,"_ Rose said and Ianto could hear her trying not to laugh. _"The Doctor is as insane as always and it's all good fun. How's Jack?"_

"Giving the Duracell bunny the run for its money," Ianto said with a snort.

_"I did not need to know that,"_ Rose laughed out loud.

"Yet you asked," Ianto replied innocently.

_"How do you and Jack feel about meeting up with us on Oxon for the millennium festival, January 15th, 1088?"_ she asked.

"I don't know," Ianto said. "But I'm sure if it's a party, the answer will be we'd love to."

There was a whispered conversation at the other end then Rose returned. _"The Doctor suggests keeping Jack on a leash, literally. It won't attract attention on Oxon and you'll have an easier time keeping him in line."_

Ianto laughed. "Now that I'm sure he won't mind. We'll catch up with you. Give the Doctor my best."

_"I will. See you in a bit."_

"Count on it." Ianto hung up and put his mobile down. Undoing his bathrobe, he made himself comfortable as he heard Jack turning off the shower.

Ah, the joys of time travel, meaning you never really would be late for a party.

The End


End file.
